Have to disagree, Pierce's does a really good job. Just because they aren't in NC doesn't disqualify them.

As for Smithfield's, I think they do the best job of any chain with their barbecue. In fact, I have eaten there many times and found them to be superior to many of the 'fabled' barbecue places in NC. Especially some of the old standby's in eastern NC, who seem to be living more on reputation and a lack of exposure by their extremely loyal customer base to anything except their servings.

If you are talking about Pierce's Pitt BBQ in Williamsburg, I am a fan. Well, I should say that I think their bbq is very good, but the sides I have tried have not been very good.http://www.pierces.com/

swvadon, I haven't eaten at Smithfield's, but I sure know what you're talking about regarding "fabled" NC barbeque joints. Last week I ate at both the Skylight Inn in Ayden and Stamey's in Greensboro, and found both of them to be disappointing, especially Stamey's.

If you are talking about Pierce's Pitt BBQ in Williamsburg, I am a fan. Well, I should say that I think their bbq is very good, but the sides I have tried have not been very good.http://www.pierces.com/

swvadon, I haven't eaten at Smithfield's, but I sure know what you're talking about regarding "fabled" NC barbeque joints. Last week I ate at both the Skylight Inn in Ayden and Stamey's in Greensboro, and found both of them to be disappointing, especially Stamey's.

Yeah, Stamey's is just another 'chain' restaurant now. Not a lot of character left there. I could include a couple of there well known restaurants from the Wilson area in that category, too...

The problem is, their most ardent customers have probably not eaten barbecue anywhere but these places in about thirty years. They are basing everything on emotion, and nothing on actual production. I've got my own personal favorites, too, but at least I shop around enough to know whether I like them because of 'comfort' or because of quality. There IS a difference.

Smithfield's has great hushpuppies and sweet tea. They also do the chopped hog with vinegar sauce well. It's not chopped beyond recognition, the way some places do (hello Don Murray!). You see the red pepper flakes throughout the 'cue. You also see just enough bark, without it become overwhelming. The pork is cooked over gas, but that's not a mortal crime in my book. Pork over wood is a bonus for me, pork over gas doesn't subtract points. Does that make sense?

Smithfield's chicken is not bad at all, either, but we're talking pork here, so that's the central theme. Smithfield's would be a proper representative of eastern NC barbecue if they were to spread across the nation. They're not the best ever, but to be such a multi-location chain, they do very well.

If you are talking about Pierce's Pitt BBQ in Williamsburg, I am a fan. Well, I should say that I think their bbq is very good, but the sides I have tried have not been very good.

I haven't paid attention to the sides. When I eat barbecue, I eat a sandwich with slaw & hush puppies, or I eat a plate with slaw, hush puppies, and greens. On occasion I will opt for some 'nanner puddin'. Anything beyond that & I don't care. A restaurant could offer a sandwich with slaw, a sandwich without slaw, and a plate, with the only sides being hush puppies, slaw, & greens, and I'd think they were geniuses.

Talk about stripped down to its' essence, that's my perspective on barbecue. Meat, bun, & hush puppies are pretty much it for me.

After my less-than-thrilling meal at the Skylight Inn ( their unleavened cornbread is simply inedible ), I find myself wishing that I had stopped at one of the two or three Smithfield's locations that I passed. Oh well, live and learn...

Have you had the cornsticks? They're pretty popular in eastern NC. They're like an 8" version of a hush puppy, only almost as thin as a Slim Jim, and totally crust. No meal at all, just all crust. Normally, they seem to have been cooked for about fifteen minutes, when five minutes would have produced a tasty, crunchy treat.

I say all this with the utmost affection for eastern NC barbecue joints. Really, I do. But there are just quite a few of them that are mailing it in, so to speak...

In a way, it's like talking about how addicted to Captain Crunch you were as a teen, and you now realize how bad it is for you, yet you still mist over thinking about that sugar jones...

If you are talking about Pierce's Pitt BBQ in Williamsburg, I am a fan. Well, I should say that I think their bbq is very good, but the sides I have tried have not been very good.http://www.pierces.com/%3C/a%3E%3C/font%3E

After my less-than-thrilling meal at the Skylight Inn ( their unleavened cornbread is simply inedible ), I find myself wishing that I had stopped at one of the two or three Smithfield's locations that I passed. Oh well, live and learn...

Next time you come this way go back to Ayden and try Bum's Restaurant. It is on NC HWY 102 down the street and around the corner from Skylight Inn. Bum's has a selection of traditional eastern NC soul food. A larger menu. The BBQ is pit cooked over hardwood coals in a smoke house behind the restaurant. They have really good collards and cornbread. Great fried chicken. I was raised in the area and can cook a respectable hole hog myself. I get to choose from the best BBQ houses that serve eastern NC que everyday. And I rank Bum's BBQ either #1 or #2. Look them up on Facebook--Bums Restaurant

The other joint I would rank either #1 or #2 is B's BBQ in Greenville. Also on Facebook.